How are Merseyside buses changing?

Big changes are coming to Merseyside's buses over the next few years, as the Liverpool city region combined authority takes control of the network.

Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram has said it will be the first time in more than 40 years that bus services will "run in the interests of passengers, rather than private shareholders".

Merseyside and Manchester are the only places outside London to bring in a franchising model.

Currently, buses in the region are operated by private companies, which decide timetables, routes and fares.

Franchising will mean routes, timetables and bus fares, as well as both vehicle and service standards, will decided by the combined authority, which will own some of the vehicles as well.

Firstly, the buses will all look the same eventually (like they do in London and Manchester) as they will all bear the same yellow livery and colours.

There will be a fleet of 128 new buses. There will be some new routes, with buses running later into the evening and on Sundays in places where services previously only ran on weekdays.

In theory, the new network could help you travel to work or visit a loved one in hospital more easily.

Operators may be required to run buses on routes which might not make them a profit, but which the combined authority believe are important – for example, to connect people to jobs, or hospitals.

Profitable routes will help fund those that are socially necessary but commercially less viable, such as rural or off-peak services.

Rotheram said public control over the bus network will lead to strong public accountability with a clear governance structure. Performance data will be regularly published and scrutinised and there will be easy-to-use systems for public feedback.

Bus fares are already set by the Metro Mayor. At the moment, the price for a single journey for an adult is capped at £2, although that is likely to increase in June.

Unlike in Greater Manchester, the Merseyside equivalent doesn't have a snazzy name like the Bee network.

Both the buses and the Merseyrail trains are branded with the name and logo 'Metro' – but according to a combined authority spokesperson, there is no official name yet, so 'Boss buses' could theoretically be an option.

In St Helens, a new express service to Liverpool John Lennon Airport will be launched, while in Wirral, routes are being extended to provide better direct links to hospitals and rail stations.

There will be new links to hospitals like Whiston, Aintree, Alder Hey, the Royal, Broadgreen and Liverpool Women's.

Rotheram says that eventually there will be better connections to major job hubs, like the Knowledge Quarter, Knowsley Industrial Park and Huyton Industrial Estate.

Stagecoach has been selected to operate the franchised bus network based in St Helens.

Go-Ahead has been selected to operate the franchised bus network based in Wirral.

The first phase of bus franchising will begin in St Helens and Wirral in autumn 2026, before rolling out across the whole region by the end of 2027.

Even though Halton is part of the Liverpool city region, it has its own transport authority and doesn't pay into the transport pot the other five councils (Liverpool, Wirral, St Helens, Knowsley and Sefton) contribute to.

Halton will not be covered by bus franchising when it is first introduced as the council doesn't pay into the regional transport levy.

So from the end of 2027 it will be Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral covered by the franchised network.

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